Lowe Art Museum Create Scavenger Hunt App

Engaging and educating university students with mobile scavenger hunts

Since 1950, the Lowe Art Museum has served the  University of Miami as a teaching resource, and is the largest general art museum to the greater Miami area. The cultural institution opened to the public in 1952 as the first art museum in South Florida. Its 17,500-item collection is one of the most important in the Southeast, with strengths in Renaissance, Baroque, American, Native American and Asian art.

The Challenge

The client initially partnered with Engage by Cell for Audio Guide services to replace bulky and old technology.

“The devices were very dated and we couldn’t change them; there was no flexibility," said Jodi Sypher, the museum's Curator of Education. “We were looking for something more modern and sustainable.”

After analyzing several audio guide services, the institution chose Engage by Cell for its ease of use and affordability.

Several years later, the museum again approached Engage by Cell with a request to engage its student population in a fun and interactive way. Museum staff had previously staged scavenger hunts for students, but clues and other content was printed and handed to them. Museum staff wished to make future scavenger hunts more modern and interactive.

THE SOLUTION

Engage by Cell has developed several personalized mobile scavenger hunts for this client. Students are directed to mobile websites that guide them through the museum’s galleries while looking for clues. Midway through, they are tasked with taking a selfie in front of a piece of art and posting it publicly, all using Engage by Cell.

The first scavenger hunt took place during freshman orientation week.

“We thought it would be a fun way for them to explore the museum in a less-intimidating  fashion,” Sypher said. “I think the scavenger hunt is great. Everyone thought it was fun and easy to use.”

THE RESULT

Lowe Art Museum staff praised Engage by Cell’s customer service, guidance and tour development, even when working on a short timeline. They also liked the ease of use for the Engage by Cell mobile-friendly website authoring platform, which hosted the scavenger hunt content, including images and videos.

“It’s no longer a question of providing [technology] as a secondary measure,” Sypher said. “Being on campus, it’s expected for the next generation of museum-goers that there is technology offered. The challenge of a small museum like ourselves is that we don’t have a tech or a digital department. We have to be strategic and smart about how we use technology.”

Using Engage by Cell, the museum does not need an IT department to implement engagement tools. Anyone can do it.

She said students benefited from taking part in the scavenger hunts, and became acclimated to the  university, the art museum and each other.

“It provides social interaction, but at the same time, you can do it by yourself,” Sypher said.

Going forward, museum staff wants to expand to using Engage by Cell’s Mobile Fundraising tools and redeploying Audio Guides for permanent exhibits.